Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Science/2022 May 17

= May 17 =

Sex reassignment surgery, (male to female), questions
A male colleague has confided to my husband & other coworkers (all are supportive) that he is planning to transition (including surgically) to female. I have been reading Sex reassignment surgery (male-to-female) and Vaginoplasty, but have questions about the surgery.

Thanks,  Tribe of Tiger Let's Purrfect!  03:00, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * When the penis is inverted to form a vagina, what happens to the "two corpora cavernosa on the dorsal side and corpus spongiosum between them on the ventral side."? Are these tissues discarded?
 * [This] article seems to state that the newly constructed "clitoris" is located at the new vagina opening. Am I understanding correctly? Is this constructed of the sensitive tip/foreskin/circumcised area of the head of the penis?
 * In the photo in the above article, where is the urethra positioned?
 * Is it considered likely that the patient will still be able to achieve an orgasm?

As there have been no replies, I feel that my question has been offensive or imprudent.. or violated the "no medical advice" directive. I offer sincere apologies for "crossing the line", and shall be happy when my stupidity is archived. Very contrite, please forgive me, I didn't wish to offend,  Tribe of Tiger Let's Purrfect!  22:00, 20 May 2022 (UTC)
 * The question doesn't strike me as offensive, and certainly nowhere near the "no medical advice" bright-line. It's possible just nobody who read it has knowlege about the topic or any leads for whichi WP articles would give them. DMacks (talk) 08:02, 21 May 2022 (UTC)
 * Searching some medical literature, 17413887 discusses a certain vaginoplasty technique, noting "the clitoris is reconstructed from a part of the glans penis inclusive of a part of the corona", "85% of the male-to-female patients reported orgasm", "obtain orgasm after a vaginoplasty, the reconstruction of the clitoris from the neurovascular pedicled glans flap is essential". DMacks (talk) 08:13, 21 May 2022 (UTC)
 * Thanks for the reassuring & kind reply, regarding my worries about my question. I have a tendency to think that all WP editors are younger, more up-to-date, (than my grey hairs) etc, & thought someone would know the answers "right away", as a matter of course. (Foolish) Also thanks for providing the resource, this is very helpful. Will work towards doing a better job of researching on my own, in future, if the WP articles don't answer my questions. Best wishes to you,  Tribe of Tiger  Let's Purrfect!  06:24, 23 May 2022 (UTC)

Plant to be identified (3)
Hi, I found this one to look very similar to Knautia arvensis, but the article says that that flowers between July and September, whereas this photo was taken in early May. Growing on a roadside verge in southern England. Any ideas? ITookSomePhotos (talk) 08:31, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * It could possibly be some kind of Thistle, but that's a rather broad category which often just means "medium sized purple Asteraceae". We tend to only think of common thistle, Cirsium vulgare, but there are a LOT of other varieties, and many of them look a bit like your flower.  The other possibility is that it really is Knautia arvensis, which is blooming out-of-season; a thing becoming more and more common with climate change.  I know that in my garden, I have perennial daffodils which for 9 of the past 10 years have broken their own record for their earliest blossom.  About 15-20 years ago, the regularly bloomed around the last week of February/first week of March.  For the past several years, they are opening up around February 1-2.  -- Jayron 32 11:44, 17 May 2022 (UTC)


 * It certainly looks very like a field scabious (knautia arvensis), the only really similar flower is devil's bit (succisa pratensis), but the leaves are quite different. Perhaps (as suggested above) this is a product of our spell of warm, dry weather at the end of April and the beginning of May? Alansplodge (talk) 11:54, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * As a resident a little north of The Solent (rather than south as the OP evidently is), I have noticed in the last few years that plants in this region are developing at least a month earlier than used to be the case. This is doubtless due to climate change and most reference texts' datings will necessarily lag behind the current situation. In addition, the geographical situation of the Isle of Wight tends to advance such developments a little earlier than the adjacent mainland.
 * One needs to make allowances for these two factors when consulting reference works, particularly older ones. I suspect a great many of our articles could stand adjustments for the first factor; the second is too detailed for general species articles (doubtless other regions have similar local variations). {The poster formerly known as 87.81.230.195} 90.208.88.97 (talk) 16:42, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * In fact, while a website that I looked at earlier agreed with Wikipedia's "July to September", I have now found a couple of websites that do say  May until August. So, ... ITookSomePhotos (talk) 17:06, 17 May 2022 (UTC)


 * This is Scabiosa species (pincushion flower).  Eve rgr een Fir  (talk) 17:11, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * Thanks, would you hazard an opinion on the specific species? ITookSomePhotos (talk) 17:25, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * @ITookSomePhotos I take it back... this could be a Knautia arvensis with more immature stigmas. Honestly it might be better to ask on Facebook's Plant Identification group. It's their literal hobby and many are botanists.  Eve rgr een Fir  (talk) 17:48, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * An additional thought is that none of the Scabiosa species listed appear to be native to the British Isles. Alansplodge (talk) 22:01, 17 May 2022 (UTC)

Plant to be identified (4)
This one in a churchyard in southern England. I have found that the flowers appear similar to Cardamine pratensis, but that is "40–60 cm tall", while the plant in the photo is a small and delicate plant nestling down at grass level. Any ideas? ITookSomePhotos (talk) 17:23, 17 May 2022 (UTC)


 * There are a lot of different kinds of bittercress. Based on what the Royal Horticultural Society say about it "sometimes growing just a few centimeters", hairy bittercress, I choose you. Your picture does not show the stems or leaves clearly enough for me to assess how hairy they are. If you're going to make a habit of this, have you considered taking photos of those parts of the plant useful for identification, alongside the pretty flowers? Card Zero  (talk) 18:42, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * I have now. ITookSomePhotos (talk) 19:51, 17 May 2022 (UTC)

microplastics found in umbilical cord, so...
Scientists have found plastic in an umbilical cord.https://thehill.com/changing-america/well-being/longevity/531322-for-the-first-time-scientists-find-microplastics-in/amp/

So I have also read that microplastics might affect male fertility. So have scientists actually found microplastics in human semen(yet?)? thanks. Rich (talk) 20:50, 17 May 2022 (UTC)


 * Here's an article in Int J Environ Res Public Health (for short) which says that endocrine disrupting chemicals, such as Bisphenol A, are the concern. From Health effects of Bisphenol A, I quote Ubiquitous in environment through consumer products such as reusable plastics, food and beverage container liners, baby bottles, water resistant clothing. It has been identified as an EDC and found in urine, blood, amniotic fluid, breast milk and cord blood. So this is not just about microplastics, and not just about males, and the mechanism of action is not exactly by getting into the semen, but by mimicking a hormone (although I'm vague on which hormone and where in the body it actually takes effect - so alright, yes, presumably the gonads). Edit: I'm striking out "not just about microplastics" because of what the journal article says about microplastics coming out of plastic cups while you drink from them. I hadn't thought of such a direct route, I was imagining something more like "they're in the food chain". Also (because I've got to the end of the article now) in the conclusion they say: Data are still preliminary but suggest that ingested MPs bio-accumulate in mammalian tissue, including the testis, with outcomes on semen quality in rodents, as a consequence of inflammatory state and oxidative stress damage. So that's about inflammation, or "inflammatory state" (whatever that is), and not hormones in a more familiar sense. (I suppose "hormones" is a very broad category.) This may simply be because the experiment they did (feeding polystyrene to mice) had this result, not that it's the only possible mechanism. Card Zero  (talk) 21:14, 17 May 2022 (UTC)
 * Bisphenol A acts in the human body much like estrogen, the primary “female” hormone also used in feminizing hormone therapy as given to transgender women. --Lambiam 10:25, 18 May 2022 (UTC)
 * Which is also liable to affect female fertility (negatively), being a component of the pill. Card Zero  (talk) 12:43, 18 May 2022 (UTC)
 * It is worth mentioning Paracelsus's first law of toxicology "The dose makes the poison". Which is to say that it isn't the presence of a substance that makes it harmful, it is its concentration; detecting the presence of something in the body does not necessarily mean it is harmful.  Which is to say that Bisphenol A and other substances are known to be harmful, but noting the presence of such substances does not mean they are necessarily causing harm, if they are in such low concentrations that they could not cause harm.  Also related is Correlation does not imply causation.  -- Jayron 32 14:24, 18 May 2022 (UTC)
 * That's true, all we have are suggestions. Card Zero  (talk) 18:05, 18 May 2022 (UTC)
 * (Well i just hope if plastic is ever discovered in semen, that even hyperconservative males like Tucker Carlson might care about pollution.) As far as the low concentrations in other body parts, wouldn't those concentrations possibly increase in the next few years? Rich (talk) 23:42, 18 May 2022 (UTC)